Hundred Echoes

Time passed.

The case of Zhou Zhongru, due to a letter from Meng Juxiang, simply had no follow-up.

Within the marketplace, people gradually stopped mentioning it.

When a person dies, the lamp goes out.

Except for those who loved or hated them, the living do not dwell on the dead.

Inside the inner courtyard of the Like-Elephant Martial Hall, Li Beichen executed the final move of the Giant Elephant Fist.

A few lines of small text appeared before his eyes.

Technique: Giant Elephant Fist (Minor Accomplishment)
Progress: (0/1000)
Traits: Bright Force, Elephant Breath, Hundred Echoes
Bright Force: Body and power unite, punch exceeds a thousand catties.
Elephant Breath: Breath is long and steady, stamina increased, explosive power increased.
Hundred Echoes: Muscle density significantly increased, tendon and bone strength slightly increased, capable of one hundred consecutive bursts.

In an instant, an unprecedented torrent surged into Li Beichen's body. His muscles were reinforced in a heartbeat; the muscle fibers were woven like steel cables, and with the slightest exertion, they stood out in defined strands.

At the same time, the thick tendons buried deep within his muscles were also reinforced, becoming increasingly tough and resilient, stretching and contracting with powerful vigor.

Even his bones underwent a minor strengthening, becoming increasingly solid.

This was a level of tempering usually reserved for the Eighth Rank of Tendon Refining or even the Sixth Rank of Bone Refining, yet Li Beichen had begun laying the foundation now.

All these enhancements combined to achieve a feat unimaginable for an ordinary meat-refining martial artist.

Hundred Echoes!

Ten consecutive echoes are the mark of initial success in meat refining, enough to support a martial artist in advancing to the next realm.

But now, Li Beichen had leaped directly from ten echoes to one hundred.

He had reached an achievement that, even within the Giant Elephant Sect, only true disciples could attain.

Insights regarding the Giant Elephant Fist flooded Li Beichen's mind, granting him a deeper understanding of this foundational martial art.

The evolution brought about by the panel was primarily an increase in strength and internal refinement; it did not drastically alter his physique, nor did it turn him into a beast-like figure with the massive muscle dimensions of Meng Juxiang or Zhang Meng.

All of this was completed in a flash.

His master, Meng Juxiang, was currently alone in the small room where the bronze elephant was enshrined.

The highest-ranked person present was the First Senior Brother, Zhang Meng, who was at the Seventh Rank.

As Li Beichen underwent such a change in an instant, only Zhang Meng sensed something amiss.

"Seventh, why do I feel like you've suddenly become a different person... you've become much stronger."

"Is that so? I also feel like I've become much stronger."

Li Beichen rolled up his sleeve, revealing his upper arm and a bulging, striated bicep.

In terms of sheer muscle dimension, he was firmly at the bottom among all his fellow disciples.

But no one knew how terrifying the density of his muscles truly was.

They only thought Li Beichen's muscle quality looked quite good.

Standing next to Li Beichen, the Fourth Senior Brother, Yang Ling, looked at Li Beichen's non-explosive muscles and rolled up his own sleeve as well.

With a slight exertion, blue veins bulged across his arm.

His arm was a full few sizes larger than Li Beichen's.

"First Senior Brother, Seventh's muscles still need work. The bigger they are, the stronger they are!"

The bigger they are, the stronger they are.

Among meat-refining martial artists, this was practically a universal truth.

Generally speaking, whoever had the larger physique was the stronger one.

Wu Ming, who had been beaten to death on the spot by Li Beichen, had been so careless precisely because he saw that Li Beichen's muscles were a full size smaller than his own, leading him to believe Li Beichen was overestimating his own abilities.

"Hmm, Seventh, your talent is great, but your muscles are growing too slowly!"

"You need to eat more!"

"Eat fiercely, train fiercely, and build fiercely to grow those muscles!"

Hearing these words from First Senior Brother Zhang Meng, everyone nodded in agreement.

"As Ninth Rank martial artists, we only get one tael of Exotic Beast Meat a day; it's not enough... even if we gorge ourselves on beef and mutton, it's barely enough to meet the requirements for cultivation. If you want to grow muscle, you can only rely on the passage of time. I think Seventh's progress is already quite fast."

The Sixth Senior Brother, Han Fengqi, who was usually taciturn, suddenly spoke up.

Once these words were spoken, everyone fell into silence.

Resources were indeed too scarce; for the Like-Elephant Martial Hall to provide inner-court ninth-grade disciples with half a catty of Exotic Beast Meat every five days was already an exceptionally high benefit.

No one had any room to complain.

"If you want more resources, go hunt for them in the depths of the South Ridge Mountains yourselves!"

Yuan Dazong narrowed his thin, slit-like eyes, his expression cold.

"A man can only fill his belly by relying on himself."

"Yes, Second Senior Brother!"

Han Fengqi immediately fell silent.

"Continue your training! Enough idle chatter!"

Senior Brother Zhang Meng spoke up to put an end to everything, and the group began their training once more.

The Lingnan Mountains were a massive range stretching over a thousand miles.

They spanned across the Jiangnan Circuit.

Small Gravel Mountain, located behind Clear Creek Village.

It was merely an insignificant little protrusion extending from the Lingnan Mountains.

Within those depths, it was a place of natural selection where beasts swarmed.

Only true martial artists dared to venture deep inside.

At noon, during the lunch hour.

Li Beichen picked up his rice basin and moved to sit beside Senior Brother Zhang Meng.

He wanted to ask about the Exotic Beast Meat.

Although he previously possessed dried meat made from an entire Black-White Strange Pig.

However, he trained three times a day, and as his strength progressed, the amount of dried meat he consumed daily had risen from two or three taels to nearly a catty.

Only then could he satisfy the needs of his training, keeping his energy levels high and supporting his rapid progress.

Now, more than half of the dried meat had been consumed, with only about thirty catties left.

Especially since his realm had broken through again today, and after his muscles were strengthened, the daily energy required had increased even further.

He estimated that the remaining dried meat wouldn't even last him a month.

Planning ahead, Li Beichen now had to consider his subsequent training resources.

His braised meat business was bringing in a fortune every day, and he had accumulated quite a bit of silver; if there were a channel to purchase Exotic Beast Meat, he wouldn't mind paying a high price.

Wealth might look like it belonged to him, but it was like duckweed without roots; only when it was truly converted into his own strength.

Was it real and substantial.

"Senior Brother!"

Zhang Meng was still holding a lamb leg the size of a face in one hand, devouring his meal.

Moreover, Li Beichen noticed a piece of meat the size of a palm in his bowl.

It was golden in color, with an exotic fragrance that assaulted the nose.

At a glance, it was clearly the meat of an extraordinary creature.

The quality of this Exotic Beast Meat looked far higher than the Black-White Strange Pig meat at Li Beichen's home.

"Speak!"

"Senior Brother, is hunting in the Lingnan Mountains the only way to obtain Exotic Beast Meat? Are there no other channels?"

Zhang Meng stopped eating, looked up to size up Li Beichen, and pondered for a moment.

"There actually is one, and that braised meat business of yours is earning quite enough silver."

"Wait until I finish my meal, and I'll tell you!"

"Alright!"

Li Beichen also threw himself into the great cause of devouring his meal.

Once full and satisfied, Zhang Meng found a thin twig to pick his teeth, gave Li Beichen a look, and then swaggered toward the bamboo pavilion in the corner of the inner courtyard.

Li Beichen followed immediately.

"Senior Brother, please enlighten me!"

"Seventh, if you want to buy Exotic Beast Meat, there is a place where you might be able to find it, though it's a matter of luck."

"What place?"

"The Black Market."

Hearing these two words, Li Beichen raised an eyebrow.

"Senior Brother, please elaborate..."